Explaining the separation to Noah was harder than confronting Eric.
We met with a family counselor first.
She reminded us to keep adult details out of the conversation and to reassure him that both parents loved him.
We sat with Noah on the couch after dinner.
“Dad’s going to live somewhere else for a while,” I told him.
His eyes filled.
“Because I told you about the house?”
My heart broke.
“No,” I said immediately. “You didn’t cause this.”
Eric leaned forward.
“Buddy, I made some choices that hurt Mom. Those choices were mine.”
“But I wasn’t supposed to tell.”
“You should never have had to keep that secret,” Eric said. “I was wrong to ask.”
Noah looked between us. “Are you still my mom and dad?”
“Always,” I said.
He crawled into my lap, although he was getting too big for it.
For weeks afterward, he asked whether we were getting back together.
